Two TVM school boys drown in swimming pool

Thiruvananthapuram: Two school students drowned in a swimming pool at Venkavila here on Saturday. The deceased are Shinil and Aromal, natives of Kusarkode in Nedumangad.

The incident occurred around 1.30 pm at the Royal Swimming Club in Venkavila. The club offers swimming lessons to students in two sessions, from 4 am to 8 am and from 4 pm to 8 pm. 

However, a group of seven boys, including the deceased students, entered the pool area unnoticed, outside of the club’s regular hours. "The pool is surrounded by houses. They sneaked in through the backyard of one house, as the club gate was locked," said Kannan Venkavila, ward member.

He said that the boys did not know how to swim properly, and two of them began to drown. The others attempted to rescue their friends using sticks but initially tried to hide the incident from the locals, he added.

However, locals grew suspicious after seeing the boys rushing with sticks and questioned them about what had happened. Upon learning of the incident, they immediately alerted the fire force and rushed to the scene.

The main gate of the club was locked, and residents had to break it open to access the pool area. "Unfortunately, by the time they reached the boys, they had already died," said Kannan.

Their bodies have been shifted to Thiruvananthapuram Medical College Hospital. Shinil was a student of Class 8, while Aromal was studying in Class 11.